Under normal circumstances, the meeting of the Electoral Colleges up and down the US attracts very little public or media attention. However, 2020 is not a normal year, what with the Covid 19 pandemic and the refusal of President Donald Trump to concede defeat to Democratic rival Joe Biden. Concerns about the pandemic meant the largest ever number of postal voters and provided Trump with the excuse of alleged electoral fraud to claim that the Electoral Colleges should overturn the popular vote.
Between the election results and the Electoral Colleges convening the Trump campaign brought multiple law cases to change voter outcomes in the marginal states and lost every single case. The colleges duly voted following the electoral results in their respective state, and therefore affirming Joe Biden as the President-Elect this past Monday(12/14/20). Biden won by 306 votes to 232, well ahead of the 270 seats required.
In response to the results multiple politicians from both parties responded:
- President-Elect Joe Biden said,” In America, politicians don’t take power. People grant power to them. The flame of democracy was lit in this nation a long time ago. And we now know nothing, not even a pandemic or an abuse of power, can extinguish that flame”.
- Republican Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said, “The Electoral College has spoken. So today, I want to congratulate President-elect Joe Biden”.
- Democratic Governor of Michigan Gretchen Whitmer said, “It’s time to move forward together as one United States of America. Now is the time for us to put this election behind us and to focus our efforts together to defeat our common enemy, Covid-19”.
- Republican Senator Mitt Romney said, “We’ve had every court say President Trump doesn’t have a case. The Electoral College has voted. It’s very clear that President-elect Biden will become our next president, and it’s time to move on”.
- Democratic Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said, “Now as the Republican Leader rightly acknowledged a few moments ago, Joe Biden will be the next President of the United States, and our colleague Kamala Harris will be the next Vice President of the United States”.